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Episode 199: Ishiro Honda: The Artist Who Directed Godzilla
Show Notes : We discuss the films of Director Ishiro Honda, with a focus on GODZILLA (1954), FAREWELL RABAUL (1954) and his work with Akira Kurosawa. Films Discussed * Directed by Ishirō Honda ** The Blue Pearl (1951) ** The Eagle of the Pacific (1953) ** Godzilla (1954) ** Farewell Rabaul (1954) ** Rodan (1956) ** The Mysterians (1957) ** Mothra (1961) ** King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) ** Gorath (1962) ** Matango (1963) ** Atrigon (1963) ** Frankenstein Conquers the World (1965) ** Invasion of Astro-Monster (1965) ** War of the Gargantuas (1966) ** Latitude Zero (1969) ** Terror of Mecha-Godzilla (1975) * Directed by Akira Kurosawa ** Stray Dog (1949) ** Throne of Blood (1957) ** Dodesukaden (1970) ** Dersu Uzala (1975) ** Kagemusha (1980) ** Ran (1985) ** Dreams (1990) ** Rhapsody in August (1991) ** Madadayo (1993) * King Kong Appears in Edo (1938) Dir. Sōya Kumagai * Only Angels Have Wings (1939) Dir. Howard Hawks * The Red Shoes (1948) Dir. Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger * Twelve O'Clock High (1949) Dir. Henry King * Godzilla Raids Again (1955) Dir. Motoyoshi Oda Discussion Notes * Our hosts discuss Godzilla's many dads ** Ishirō Honda (director) ** Tomoyuki Tanaka (producer) ** Eiji Tsuburaya (special effects) ** Akira Ifukube (music) * Ishirō Honda: one of the most famous and most seen Japanese directors - with a nearly-entirely forgotten filmography ** A great director not given the opportunities he needed to make great films in his time *** Ishirō Honda: A Life in Film, from Godzilla to Kurosawa by Steve Ryfle & Ed Godziszewski * Themes in his filmography ** Disillusionment with war, based on his WWII experience ** Optimistic humanism, dreaming of a world coming together to solve problems peacefully * Farewell Rabaul ** Platoon of WWII fighter pilots realizing they aren't going to win the war *** Compare to Only Angels Have Wings and Twelve O'Clock High ** Portrays the anger at the lack of value the Japanese leadership had in their troops lives * Godzilla ** A grim tale of the push and pull of bodies of people wondering if their loved ones are alive ** Will - "this is what a society that has been bombed with nuclear weapons dreams after nine years" ** The '54 Godzilla - no personality, just an force of destruction moving forward ** The film asks - where do we go from here? What happens after we kill Godzilla? * What would have happened if Honda had gotten away from Godzilla? * Honda's late career team-up with Akira Kurosawa ** An odd couple - Honda's even-keel attitude balanced Kurosawa's fiery temper *** Honda was brought on as assistant director/co-director under Kurosawa ** Honda's son suggested these Kurosawa partnerships were the happiest parts of his fathers career * Dreams ** Honda worked as creative consultant ** Based on the supposed dreams of Kurosawa *** Scorsese plays Vincent van Gogh in a scene! ** One sequence involving a dead soldiers is clearly based on the experiences of Honda *** Returns to the concept of unwinnable wars introduced in Farewell Rabaul * Justin on Honda's other sci-fi movies like The Mysterians - "It doesn't need to have Godzilla in all of them" ** Moments later - "I wish Godzilla would show up" Listener Letters * No letters this week! Post-Outro Discussion *Our hosts discuss the film doldrums of January *''Bad Bays 3'' - more watchable than Bad Boys 2! *''Dolittle'' **Will on the visual style - it's 'an assault of experiences' **Robert Downey Jr. - doesn't he have enough money now? Will he ever? * Richard Fleischer's Doctor Doolittle went up against Bonnie and Clyde, The Graduate, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, and In the Heat of the Night for Best Picture in 1967 **''Pictures of the Revolution: Five Movies and the Birth of the New Hollywood'' by Mark Harris - book **Do people actually like the original? Or The Eddie Murphy ones? *Our hosts discuss blockbusters destroyed in post-production **''John Carter'' **''Suicide Squad'' **''Justice League'' **''Rise of Skywalker'' *Justin on the need for big-budget success and the accompanying doubts - "Oh my god my child is gonna run this marathon and I don't want anything to go wrong so let's chop his legs off!" Category:Episodes Category:Ishiro Honda Category:Godzilla